The subject matter disclosed herein relates to joining a metal cladding to a metal substrate surface.
Cladding can be applied to a substrate for many reasons. In one or more types of cladding, the substrate is a metal and the cladding is a similar or dissimilar metal. Joining the metal cladding to the metal substrate typically requires melting the cladding and a surface of the metal substrate together to form a molten metal pool and allowing the pool to cool and solidify. The result of the cladding application process is that the metal cladding is firmly affixed to the metal substrate.
There are many variables involved in the cladding application process such as heat input, cladding width, and cladding deposition rate. In general, these variables must be kept within certain windows in order to prevent defects in the affixed cladding such as non-uniformity and pitting. Some of these variables may be at odds with each other. For example, increasing the cladding deposition rate typically requires a high heat input, which can lead to crack formation. Some of these defects, unfortunately, can require rework or scrapping. Hence, it would be well received in the cladding application art if the rate of cladding deposition could be increased without incurring defects in the affixed cladding.